https://grell.dev/blog/di2_downgrade https://grell.dev/blog/di2_attack
> must be within a couple of meters of the bike
The range of radio transmitters/transceivers can be increased, and accidental transmissions from various things could affect it.
Choosing to allow any kind of remote control over a manned vehicle is a risk. There can be benefits, but winning a race may not be worth giving up your life.
Similarly, I don’t want IoT devices and won’t connect them when I have to buy them. I’d prefer to keep my thermostat and appliances safe, and a neighbor can turn them off if I forget.
https://bikenewportri.org/abc-safetycheck/
There is also a certain matter of training --- badly bent a frame when I was young because I wasn't taught how to deal with a brake failure (rainy day and steel rims) --- the answer of course is to put one's foot up on the front wheel:
https://bicycles.stackexchange.com/a/7287/7344
Of course, the biggest danger could also be addressed by training --- as a part of getting a driver's license, drivers should be taught the "Dutch reach":
https://www.theaa.com/driving-advice/safety/dutch-reach?msoc...
and riding a bicycle a mile or two in practice and a use of/review of hand signals should be a part of the road test.
Even when the brakes fully work, the tires don't provide enough traction to stop quickly ...
Ever since that last big crash I am way more cautious about all the ways my bicycle can fail me while riding.. the one good thing is there aren't that many parts to worry about with bicycles
Aside from just laying down and scraping yourself against the rode, which might still be preferable depending on the alternative!
(Gravel or other slippery surface where the front wheel would just skid? You're toast. Ride slowly instead.)
I advise beginners (yes there are a lot of them) to practice making panic stops in a safe place such as an empty parking lot.
As a hypothetical one would think it would be necessary to slam on the brakes more often, but the situation has never come up.
Experience does make a difference, but I haven't yet seen the risk of an unexpected stop drop to zero. And I think learning to control the bike is still valuable for a beginner, so they can survive to the point of developing their street smarts. A panic stop teaches you how to control the bike.
The recent e-bike boom has been a chance to observe a lot of beginners learning to ride. One habit I've seen on the paths is being "afraid to stop," resulting in minor collisions within groups of cyclists, and cars making panic stops when the bike paths cross roads. These are the people to whom I suggest learning how to use the brakes.
Also, on uneven ground you can apply a little brake to get a sense of the surface. Feel how the bike responds and moderate accordingly.
My casual rides to the shop on my beach cruiser in my sleepy little town? Both my wheels could come off and I'd probably be fine. I'm rarely hitting 10mph.
Downhill mountain biking? Yeah, basically everything is important.
Aside, I was expecting an article comparing good software to a bicycle. Every part of good software being important and well maintained.
Whether those four bolts are at 8.86nm or 7nm is not usually a big deal. This is strictly speaking about bicycles, however, not aircraft or rockets :) there are a few bolts where an absolute clamp load on a single fastener is important: controls on a carbon bar. For my experience, though I have seen some bike shop mechanics reef on these (8-12nm) without consequence, even though the manual clearly states 4nm. I would do exactly what the manufacturer says here.
Most frustratingly: I'd already ordered a replacement, it just hadn't arrived yet.
Do you think people should treat cars and bikes 100% equivalently (including such things as whether you can drive them in the bike lane), or would you agree society should treat the two differently?
PS: your argument is a bit silly. Analogy: all humans are equal; except that does not mean that we should treat all people the same way in all circumstances.
Things like that make me feel apprehensive about trying to learn more bike maintenance stuff myself. It's almost inevitable to have to patch flat tires though so you're always going to be reinstalling the wheel yourself, but I don't touch the brakes even if it seems like an easy fix.
Brakes suck. For maintenance I actually enjoy the regular brakes instead of the hydraulic ones. You have to realistically change your break pads every month or two and it's difficult to do with the hydraulic ones by comparison.
Author seems to forget the most important part of the machinery is the rider. What a glorious machine! He also seems to forget that millions of people in the world are riding bikes, motorbikes, and cars scrapped together from whatever they can afford or find. Forced to accept the risk, they usually get where they're going. I wonder does the author check out the maintenance of every Uber he hops into? "Let me see your torque wrench!?"
I've built and maintained all my own bikes since around 2005 with no training. It doesn't take a genius or a torque wrench to keep a bike rolling. I recently dropped my standards quite a bit on two bikes: One where I took a decent 2021 FS trail MTB I'd maybe ridden ten times on a black diamond downhill singletrack and another where I took a 1998 HT MTB with seized shifters, no grips, crusty, barely-functioning brakes and a sun-baked Hellraiser-looking rear tire held together only by a thin sheet of kevlar(?) around the streets of Portland, Oregon for three weeks wearing no helmet. I know, I'm a monster.
As an aside, I ride a 2005 Yamaha YZ250 (dirt motorcycle) my ex maintains... that feels sorta... dangerous.
HPsquared•4h ago
1. Does the part give clear "warning" that failure is imminent (e.g. sound, feel, appearance), or will it just fail suddenly? (This characteristic is often a key design feature of safety-critical equipment)
2. When the part fails (note, different failure modes should be considered separately), what is the range of outcomes? (E.g. drive failure is dangerous if you're crossing the street, not so dangerous at other times; bell failure could occur at the worst possible time, etc). Then on the other hand we have structural failure of the frame and handlebars etc which are almost guaranteed injury.
So if you are riding a bike with lightweight racing components that aren't designed with a "leak-before-break" philosophy, riding in mountainous terrain in a crowded peloton, then yes - pretty much any small deviation from normal could cause a massive pileup. On the other hand, a leisurely commmuter ride on a quiet path has much more tolerance for component failure.
tetraodonpuffer•4h ago
In my experience (many years of riding, quite a few years of bike commuting full time included) most mechanicals on the front wheel mean a fall/crash, but everything else just leads to having to walk home if you don't have the right tools (carrying a couple spare chain links in addition to the typical flat repair stuff and a full set of hex keys lowers the chance you'll have to do so).
kqr•4h ago
As TFA states, it depends on how much you're relying on it to keep balanced.
eitally•3h ago
jappgar•53m ago
Modern mountain bikes live in this weird consumer space. They are designed to stand up to incredible stresses while remaining light and agile. But they're increasingly purchased by people who don't really need high performance gear, they just like the idea of owning "the best" stuff.
I imagine the same thing is true with pickup trucks. What once was utilitarian becomes a vanity object. Now it's harder for people who genuinely need the performance.
cenamus•50m ago